Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-30
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart below shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants between 2003 and 2013.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The chart illustrates the comparison of how often people of USA ate in fast food chains between 2003 and 2013.
Overall, over 30% ate once a week in both 2003 and 2006 whereas it was once or twice a month in 2013. A very small percentage of people tend to have eaten fast food every day, while almost the same number of people have never eaten such food.
In 2003, more than 30% of population ate once a week while the percentage of people having it everyday and never was quite high when compared to what of 2006 and 2013. While, 2006 also showed a similar pattern with highest percentage of people at around 32.5% who ate once a week.
Proportion of people eating once a week, several times a week and a few times a year rose considerably. In contrast, the percentage diminished in categories of have eaten every day, never have eaten and have eaten a few times a year which remained unchanged at approximately 2.5%, 4% and 15% respectively till 2013.
Percentage of people eating once or twice a month surged dramatically from 25% to more than 32% in the year 2013.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The student attempts to address the prompt by reporting on several key features of the chart, such as the peak category of eating once a week and the change in 2013 towards eating once or twice a month. However, there are notable inaccuracies and confusions regarding the data. For instance, the student states that the percentage of people eating every day and never 'was quite high when compared to what of 2006 and 2013', which contradicts the visual data showing that daily and never percentages remained very low and relatively stable. Furthermore, some comparisons lack precision and the overview contains minor factual inaccuracies regarding the dominant trends across the years. Overall, the response covers the main task requirements but suffers from data misinterpretations that pull down the level of accurate reporting.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response is organised into multiple paragraphs, attempting an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs detailing specific data categories. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by confusing referencing and contradictory statements within sentences. Cohesive devices such as 'while', 'in contrast', and 'overall' are attempted, but their mechanical and sometimes inaccurate usage hinders smooth reading (e.g., 'While, 2006 also showed a similar pattern...'). Paragraphing is present, but internal cohesion lacks clarity, leading to an overall arrangement that feels disjointed in places.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range to discuss data trends, employing terms like 'proportion', 'percentage', 'surged dramatically', and 'diminished'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors throughout the text, such as 'tend to have eaten fast food every day' and 'categories of have eaten every day, never have eaten'. Additionally, phrasing like 'how often people of USA ate' sounds unnatural. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey general meaning, the persistent inaccuracies place it within the Band 6 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing subordinate clauses introduced by 'while' and 'whereas'. However, grammatical control is inconsistent, resulting in several awkward structures and errors (e.g., 'what of 2006 and 2013', 'percentage of people having it everyday and never was quite high'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but grammatical slips in tense consistency and preposition usage occur regularly. These errors do not entirely impede communication, but they restrict the response to a Band 5.5 or 6.0 profile, fitting best at Band 5.5 due to the frequency of structural awkwardness.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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